Solidity of color and line in nature is an illusion; these paintings are part of my ongoing chronicle of the ephemeral in outdoor spaces.

The organic shapes follow the birch panels curving woodgrain lines. The series was inspired by a local greenbelt trail in called the Violet Crown. My favorite hiking entrance is a switchback descent lined with cracked rocks, broken yet resting together like puzzle pieces. Each panel brings out colors I photographed on these hikes; soft green mosses, gray rocks, blooming lantana, and the ever-shifting violet to blue of the sky. The Violet Crown is also a literary description of the Austin skyline, a nod to the city's historical focus on outdoor life and enjoyment of the simple beauty around us.

These paintings are also a deeper exploration within my art practice of processes to bring the lines of the wood grain into sharper focus. The organic-shaped panels were fabricated to follow curving lines of wood grain.